THE OF LOS · LISTOFILLUSTRATIONS INCOLOUR ARajputofRajgarh ASoldier oftheMaharaja Sikkim...

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THE UNIVERSITYOF CALIFORNIALOS ANGELES

PEOPLES OFMANY LANDS

THE PEOPLE OF INDIA

IN THE SAME SERIES

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THE PEOPLE OFINDIA

PAINTED BY

MORTLMER MENPES

WITH INTRODUCTION BY

G. E. MITTON

LONDON

ADAM AND CHARLES BLACK1910

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LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONSIN COLOUR

A Rajput of Rajgarh

A Soldier of the Maharaja of

Sikkim

A Rajput of Rajgarh

A Retainer from Rajgarh

A ITawksman of Rajgarh

A Kashmiri Pundat

A Sikh Spear-Bearer

A Sikh Warrior

Spear-Bearer from Jind

A Retainer from Jind

Of the Imperial Cadet Corpsj

An Armed Retainer of the

Bombay Chiefs^

Horseman from Bombay|

I

A Hindu Hill - Shepherd of

Kashmir

A Kashmiri Soldier

A Tailor I

A Seed Stall, Delhi

Late Afternoon

Water-Carriers at Nutha

Hindu WomenA Soldier of His Highness

Dogra Sowar

An Elephant and Retainers

from Bikanir

A Native Bullock-Cart, Bikanir

A Formidable Warrior of Rewa

A Retainer of the Maharaja of

Cutch

A Retainer from Cutch

A Standard-Bearer of Cutch

A Native Bride

Market-Women of Ajmere

A Singing-Girl

A Retainer from Central India

Nautch Girls

Also 32 smaller Illustrations in Black

end White printed on the interleaves

\

THE PEOPLE OF INDIA

OF the large minority of English people whohave not visited India, it is safe to say that

there are few who do not feel as if they had,

so strong is their familiarity with the mighty

peninsula by reason of the pictures and de-

scriptions so freely scattered among us. Yet the

absurdity of this vague and nebulous "knowledge '*

is most clearly demonstrated directly there arises

any discussion concerning the great races of

India. A murmur of Sikhs, Hindus, and possibly

Ghoorkas, will be all that most people can produce

under such pressure, and yet this probably repre-

sents, fairly enough, all that they know of the

"variegated jumble of races and peoples, castes

and creeds, that make up the population of India,"

to use the words of the well-equipped and able

writer, who, in 1910, published a series of articles

on India in The Times,

Not even the most learned ethnologist can say

definitely what is the exact ancestry of the fine

war-like men who supply the material for someof our best regiments in India, still less can they

sort out into its true elements the composite

ancestry of the mass of the people. We do know,however, that the highest caste of Hindus, the

THE PEOPLE OF INDIA

proud Brahmans, and the splendid men who form

the"aristocracy of the Rajputs, are of pure Aryanblood, having kept themselves distinct and refused

to intermarry with other classes. In the striking

faces of some of these men the influence of cen-

turies of command is clearly stamped, and their

physiognomy is in marked contrast to the lower

classes, of Madrassis, for example, whose round

faces and thick noses betray traces of negro origin,

possibly derived from ancestors who came over

from Arabia in the successive waves of Moham-medan incursions. The vast mass of the people

are of extremely mixed blood, and Scythians,

Persians, Aryans, etc., have alike contributed to

their making ; the traits of one or another stand-

ing out predominantly in members of the samefamily.

Of the aborigines, some have sunk into the

general mass, but others still preserve their

characteristics, living in caves and hill-corners,

generally in a degraded state. Among these maybe reckoned the Bhils, the Gonds, the Kols, the

Nairs, and many another tribe, now of little

importance except ethnographically.

Perhaps the classification most easily understood

is that of religion, which, to some extent, though

very roughly, follows the lines of race cleavage.

The Hindus, who form by far the largest propor-

tion of the total population, are naturally the best

known ; as already indicated, Hinduism in someform was brought in by the Aryan invasion. To

V-"

THE PEOPLE OF INDIA 3

this religion most of the native Princes ruling

independent States belong. The Hindus are to

the Mohammedans as about three to one.

The Mohammedans, the next in order numeri-

cally, can claim the Nizam of Hyderabad, whorules the largest independent State, as belonging

to their religion. The Mohammedans swept in

upon the Aryans in waves, and though stubbornly

resisted succeeded in establishing a dynasty whichlasted for many hundreds of years. To the

Mohammedan Moguls belong the proudest namesin Indian history—those of Baber, Akbar and

Aurungzebe, father, grandson, and great-grand-

son. At the present time the Mohammedansdread the power of the Hindus, who so far out-

number them, and it is certain that were ever

British rule to be withdrawn from India, the

Hindus would make a desperate attempt to drive

their Mohammedan fellov^-countrymen into the

sea, and thus to sweep the country clear of them.

The Buddhists are the next most important in

number, and though the Buddhists are only as

one in twenty to the Mohammedans, they are not

in the same position, because they are segregated

to a great extent ; the mass of the Buddhists being

the Shans and Burmans of Burma, or F'urther

India, and some, of a slightly different type, being

found in the independent States of Sikkim and

Bhutan ; they are not scattered throughout India.

The Sikhs are a mere handful in number, about

half as many as the Buddhists ; the Jains and

4 THE PEOPLE OF INDIA

Parsees also count but little in a population

numbered in millions.

After religion there is the evidence of language

to be considered. Even those who have lived in

the country would probably consider that "Hindu-

stanee " forms a good general answer as to an

Indian national language ; it is, of course, the

lingua francn, but the number of separate languages

is legion. To quote the same writer already

referred to, "there is a greater diversity of races,

languages, social customs, physical conditions, etc.,

between the different provinces of India than is

often to be found between the different countries

of Europe." It is difficult, indeed, to regard

the mighty peninsula as if it were a congeries

of European countries, with Russian, German,

EngHsh, French, and Italian straitly defining the

boundaries of the nations; yet the Latin languages,

French, Italian, and Spanish, are all closely akin,

and German, English, and the Danish tongues

have a common origin. Certainly not farther

apart are these from one another than the tongues

of the races of India. Here are a few : Marathi,

Gujerati, Sindhi, Kanarese, Tamil, Telugu, Ben-

gali, Bihari, Assamese, Punjabi, to say nothing of

Burmese. Some of these languages are allied, as

Tamil and Telugu, but they are more than merevariations of dialect, having split off so far back

that they may fairly be classed as languages by

themselves. As for the oldest Aryan tongue, the

Sanscrit, this is preserved in the sacred writings,

THE PEOPLE OF INDIA 5

but has long ceased to be understandable by anybut the priestly caste.

To come now to a few of the outstanding races.

Of all those in India, the Rajputs are the proudest.

The Maharaja of Udaipur is the premier prince of

all the Rajputs, and he claims a descent whichreaches back into the mythical ages—in fact, it is

supposed to begin with the sun and moon ! Hisinsignia shows a golden sun rayed on a huge disc

of black ostrich feathers, and is worshipped by all

Hindus. Out of the nineteen States of Rajputana,

sixteen are ruled by hereditary Rajput chiefs, andthe rulers of Mysore, Cochin, and Travancorealso claim Rajput blood. The small statured race

of Ghoorkas claim also to be Rajputs, though

showing marked characteristics of their own.The Maharaja of Kashmir is, oddly enough, a

Rajput, though his subjects are of very mixed race

and religion. The distinguishing characteristic of

the Rajputs is their virility ; they are fighters, andtheir strong noses and bushy beards seem to pro-

claim the fact.

Though the Sikhs are bound together by religion,

and not by race, yet they formed a kingdom of

their own in the Punjab, with Lahore as capital.

Their sacred city is Amritsar. The Sikh religion

embraces such tenets as the abolition of caste, the

unity of the Godhead, and purity of life ; their

women are free, and the results of the religion,

which to them is an active force in daily life, is seen

in their conduct, for a finer, sterner set of men is

6 THE PEOPLE OF INDIA

found nowhere in India. They have been Hkenedto Cromwell's " Ironsides." They are magnificent

fighters, and the veriest tyro in Indian history

knows of the two Sikh wars which ended in the

annexation of the Punjab. Though the Mutinyoccurred but eight years after this annexation,

the Sikhs were determinedly loyal to their newrulers, and proved a splendid defence in the hour of

need. They not only remained loyal themselves,

but were able to send help to the rest of the

country in the throes of revolution. The Sikh

fashion is to wear a long, flowing, untrimmed beard,

which gives refinement to the face, and their keen,

sharp features are also usually refined, while the

prevailing expression of their faces is that endorsed

by experience—they are to be trusted. Sikh

chiefs rule in Patiala, Nabha, and Kapurthala.

The name of the Maharaja of Patiala is well

known in England, where his sporting instincts

and high code have won him many friends. Theinhabitants of the native State of Jind in the

Punjab are mixed Hindus and Sikhs.

The whole question of the native Prince-rulers

of India is most interesting. There are, in all,

close upon 700 native States enfolded in British

territory, and occupying a position unique in the

world. They vary in size from the huge domainof the Nizam, almost as large as the United King-

dom, down to small estates like those held byEnglish country gentlemen ; of them all, only

about 200 are worth taking into account, the

THE PEOPLE OF INDIA 7

others being mere chieftainships. The Prince-

rulers cannot make war or peace upon their

own initiative ; their protection is ensured by the

British Empire, but in return for the security they

enjoy they are expected to keep their territories

in order and to deal justly with their people. Theunanimity with which these native rulers havedeclared themselves on the side of the governing

authority in the late unrest is most remarkable.

It may be thought that they have done this with

an eye to their own interests, or under coercion.

The former contention may be true, but the fact

they do see it is to their own interests and the

interests of their country to back up British rule

is the whole point, and as for coercion, what there

is runs the other way, for it must have required

considerable courage for an Oriential to speak out

boldly and unequivocably, especially when his

doing so might be cast up against him as a dere-

liction from loyalty to his own people. The single

exception to the emphatic endorsement of British

policy came from the Gaekwar of Baroda, whoselanguage was not ardent, but rather cool.

No more brilliant idea was ever conceived than

that of making a corps for ruling chiefs and nobles

alone, and when Lord Curzon formed the Imperial

Cadet Corps he opened out a fine training-ground

for many a native Prince who inherited with the

daring blood of his ancestors an aptitude for

soldiering which, up till then, he had been unable

to gratify in any way.

8 THE PEOPLE OF INDIA

The race of the Mahrattas is another of which

notice must be taken in even the most cursory

survey of the peoples of India. The Maharaja of

Kohlapur claims descent from the great Shivaj,

the cruel marauder whose name is held in such

unspeakable veneration among the Hindus ; he is

the only ruling Mahratta chief thus distinguished.

The Mahrattas are a virile race, wiry rather than

sturdy ; they came in upon the ruins of the MogulEmpire and carved for themselves kingdoms, until

they in turn had to yield to the British. Bombaywas obtained in great part by annexations from

them, and their language, Marathi, which has an

abundant popular literature, is one of the spoken

languages in the province.

The tribes of the extreme north, to be found in

Kashmir and among the high hill-passes leading

over into Tibet, are very different in physique

and countenance from the men of the richer

plains. Accustomed to no prodigality of nature,

but to a stony land, over which icy blizzards

sweep with frequency, they have learnt neither

to expect to receive, nor to give ; every stranger

sighted is potentially an enemy. Their one con-

solation lies in the yaks, which, rough as the menthemselves, brave extreme cold with hardihood,

and are not only beasts of burden, but supply

their masters with milk, clothing and fuel. Yaksare to the Kashmiris as camels to the dwellers in

the desert, and a man's wealth is reckoned by the

number of them he owns. One of the greatest

THE PEOPLE OF INDIA 9

contrasts to be found anywhere in India is that

between these lean, slow-witted, enduring men, and

the well-fed, ghb Bengali of the rich river plains

around Calcutta. Of all the types familiar to

Europeans the Bengali is the best known. Thesemen cannot be called a race in the same way that

the Rajputs and Mahrattas are races ; they are of

mixed origin, Aryan, Mongolian, Dravidian, andare the result of many intermarriages. Yet in

recent years the Bengalis have begun to claim

recognition as a "nation," and it was for this

reason that the partition of Bengal, decided uponfor administrative convenience, aroused so muchbitterness. The chief characteristic of the Bengali

is his amazing appetite for knowledge ; he literally

sucks it in, and though his discontent is often due

to mental indigestion, brought on by a superficial

acquaintance with too vast an area of thought, yet

when it is considered that all his work is done in

a foreign language, his success and application are

astounding. He has not the virility of the purer

races—in fact, he is often a bit of a coward—but he

is quick-witted, imaginative, impulsive, and his

flow of language has long been a by-word. As a

babu, or Government clerk, the Bengali is at his

best, for though too easily led, apt to be inflated

by an undue sense of his own importance, and

utterly lacking in initiative, yet he is supple and

keen, has a marvellous memory and a pigeon-hole

mind. Anyone who can pass an examination and

get into Government service is considered a made

10 THE PEOPLE OF INDIA

man for life. Below the babus are the large class

of craftsmen, including some of the finest workersin the world. The crafts descend from father to

son : a man who is a weaver will have had weaverforbears, and he who keeps a shop will have de-

scended from a shop-keeping race ; the trades run

in families in a way unknown among our ownpeople.

No account, however superficial, of the races of

the Indian Empire would be complete without

some reference to the Shans and Burmese, both

as representatives of the Buddhist section of the

population and as the outstanding types of that

Indo-Chinese race which forms a link betweenthe Indians on the one side and the Chinese onthe other. Probably no people attracted moreattention at the Durbar—that marvellous assem-

blage of the peoples of India—than the Shans, whoappeared in great force. Their clean-shaven,

round ruddy faces, generally marked by smiling

contentment, stood out amidst the Hindus. TheShans are of a fairer skin than Indians, approxi-

mating more to the yellow-skinned natives of

China, and no one ever sees a Shan with a beard.

They are of medium height and very stoutly built,

thus again contrasting with the slimmer Hindus.

They follow the Burmese custom of tattooing the

legs of the males from the knees above the thighs,

which gives the appearance of a pair of tight knee-

breeches. In Buddhism no caste is recognized,

and the women are as free as the men. The result

THE PEOPLE OF INDIA 11

is seen in the generally happy outlook on life, for

the freedom of religion shows itself in the very

expression of the races who follow it.

No word has yet been said as to the women of

India, and for the women the deepest lines of

cleavage undoubtedly run in religion, far morethan is the case even with the men. The custom

of strict seclusion of womankind practised by the

Mohammedans was adopted by the Hindus, and

now, except in the lowest classes of all, the hewers

of wood and drawers of water, the women are

kept strictly "purdah"—it is an offence even to

mention a man's wife. In spite of all the British

Government can do to prevent it, the life of a Hinduwidow, child though she may be, is a bitter one.

In rural districts women are of necessity morefree than in the towns, though the "sari," the

cloak of disguise, often much more a metaphorical

than an actual protection, is never thrown aside,

and an Indian woman seen without her "sari"

would be marked as belonging to one particular

class. But it is the view of a woman's position in

a future life far more than any actual custom in

the present world which contributes to her degra-

dation ; Avhile women are supposed to have no

souls, or to hang on to a chance of heaven by

their husbands, or only to arrive there after

having passed through the transmigration of man-hood, it is small wonder that the women, whothemselves believe these things, should submit to

the contempt of the superior being man. To the

12 THE PEOPLE OF INDIA

Hindu, marriage is a sacred duty, for neither mannor woman can worship apart, and therefore no

reHgious life is possible to the unmarried. Amongthe Buddhists there is no such thing as a bachelor

or spinster ; marriage is as inevitable as death.

Holding these views deeply embedded in their

minds, small wonder is it that unmarried English

ladies who go about freely are stumbling-blocks to

the native women. Still more perplexing is it to

the Hindu or Mohammedan to see EngHsh ladies

driving freely about with and chatting familiarly

to their men acquaintances. Such conduct seems

infamous, and if Eastern seclusion appears to

Western ideas pitiable, no less pitiable to the

Eastern mind is the apparent abandonment of

our womenkind. The Parsees allow their womenmuch freedom, and in Burma women are practi-

cally on an equality with men, doing business and

making bargains, and they often prove themselves

the better halves in very truth.

: (n ft f)

A SOLDIER OF THE MAHARAJA OFSIKKIM

A RAJPUT OF RAJGARH

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A RETAINER FROM RAJGARH

A HAWKSMAN OF RAJGARH

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A KASHMIRI PUNDAT

A SIKH SPEAR-BEARER

A SIKH WARRIOR

SPEAR-BEARER FROM JIND

A RETAINER FROM JIND

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OF THE IMPERIAL CADET CORPS

AN ARMED RETAINER OF THE BOMBAYCHIEFS

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HORSEMAN FROM BOMBAY

A HINDU HILL-SHEPHERD OF KASHMIR

A KASHMIRI SOLDIER

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A TAILOR

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A SEED STALL, DELHI

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LATE AFTERNOON

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WATER-CARRIERS AT NUTHA

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HINDU WOMAN

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AN ELEPHANT AND RETAINERS FROMBIKANIR

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A RETAINER OF THE MAHARAJA OFCUTCH

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A RETAINER FROM CUTCH

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A NATIVE BRIDE

MARKET-WOMEN OF AJMERE

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A SINGING-GIRL

A RETAINER FROM CENTRAL INDIA

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NAUTCH GIRLS

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